Christmas Yet to Come
by shywr1ter
Summary: Tony salvages a ruined evening for the the Director's kids, and actually teaches Ziva something new in the process. Some TIVA fluff for CSIGeekfan for the 2010 NFA SeSa Exchange


**Disclaimer:** Characters borrowed; no profits realized.

**A/N:** A bit of light Christmas froth written for CSIGeek as a part of the 2010 NFA SeSa exchange. NFA is a wonderful place, but there aren't too many TIVA fans there and my story is getting lonely! If you read and like (or hate or wonder or whatever reaction you have) it would be so great to hear from you!

**_Happy holidays!_**

**Christmas Yet to Come**

Christmas, 2010 had begun for Tony DiNozzo much the same way the last ten Christmases had started for him – he was only marginally aware of the lights and the crowds and the bustle through the first weeks of the season, the gradually increasing ads and decorations lost in the pressure of whatever case they'd caught in the first weeks of December. But when that case resolved, in the second or third week of the month, suddenly the pressure eased and the MCRT came up for air – and Tony looked around to see the bell ringers and smell the fresh cut pine or cedar and be struck that, once again, it was _Christmas_...

This year, his awakening came at the end of the work week, as he and Ziva offered to give Abby a hand with the final logging of samples, brass and firearms from the case to go back into the evidence locker. McGee had turned in his report at noon and headed off to pick up his sister, so they could fly out west for a Christmas week with their parents. Gibbs had actually caved in to the predictions of heavy snow and agreed to head back to Stillwater ahead of schedule, clearly looking forward to a week with his father. Tony reflected that while he and his dad weren't at that point yet, his father off in Paris – again – for Christmas, for the first time in decades it actually seemed possible that a DiNozzo father and son Christmas could happen again one day.

For now, all of the planning and the cheer of others were enough to buoy his holiday mood – and glancing surreptitiously at Ziva, he realized what a year it had been for NCIS's fathers. Even for Ziva, there was a bit more hope. _Christmas miracles,_ he mused, _Hanukkah miracles. An ecumenical season,_ he chuckled to himself, even if he would again be spending the time on call. A tradition in larger police forces, those not celebrating Christmas with family volunteered for duty so those who did could have the day. Tony had quietly been on call at Christmas for enough years now that, for the third time, he was penciled in as an MCRT team leader for holiday duty. It had happened before, but usually when Gibbs wasn't there for the assignment. Half the time they had shared the duty over a Christmas weekend.

Abby was leaving for her holiday early too, her long-delayed trip back to Louisiana starting in a few hours, and her desk was bursting with cookies and candies and virgin eggnog so she could have some Christmas cheer with her work family before she left for her biological one. She had been singing Christmas carols and songs nearly nonstop since the case had broken the night before. Fluffy white snowflakes now swirled past her windows, and where others would have worried that the impending snow would affect their flight, Abby was enthralled that she would have her "white Christmas this afternoon, and Christmas gumbo tonight!" Even Scrooge and the Grinch would be unable to withstand Abby's genuine delight with the holiday, and as they headed back up to their desks to pack up to go home, now filled with almost as much sugar as Abby was, both Tony and Ziva were grinning as they stepped off the elevator into the bullpen, Tony brushing the cookie crumbs off his chin and Ziva asking if gumbo was really a Christmas tradition –

– until they saw the long, sad faces of Director Vance's kids at the glittering Christmas tree by the window.

Jackie's eyes lifted from the tree, circled again this year with festively wrapped Toys for Tots donations, and offered the agents a weary smile. "Ziva – Tony," she greeted the pair as they neared, seeing their immediate curiosity. "How are you?"

Tony nodded as Ziva spoke, "hello, Mrs. Vance..."

"Please, Ziva – it's Jackie," she reminded her. Agents had been on detail in her home more than once, including these two, and between keeping her husband, her immediate family, the Navy and Marines safe, Jackie saw each and every special agent in the Service as family. " Kids, can you say hi?"

The murmured greetings were polite but dispirited. As the agents looked back to their mother in awkward concern, Jackie explained, "today was the last day of school – we're officially on Christmas break now. We had a family night planned; Leon was going to take the kids skating, but..."

"...something came up." Ziva finished for her, her voice full of understanding. Tony glanced at Ziva, seeing her eyes soften in empathy for the Director's children. It struck him that she was probably remembering all the cancellations she faced as she was growing up, those interruptions far more similar to what these kids would be facing, always at the worst possible moments, than the dalliances that took his own father away.

Jackie was nodding, her hand unconsciously raising to her daughter's back to rub it consolingly. "We'll go anyway, but they really prefer going with Leon – he can actually _skate_, whereas I ..." she smirked, "well, let's just say I finally realized I would be sitting down the whole time, so I choose to do my sitting on one of the benches _outside_ the rink than on the ice inside."

"You know," DiNozzo spoke up for the first time, looking from Jackie to each of the kids, unwilling to let those faces – _any_ of them – stay disappointed any longer, if he could help it. "That's a really weird coincidence. Because just this very minute, coming up here in the elevator, I was trying to convince Agent David here to come skating with me tonight."

Ziva's eyebrows popped up in her immediate surprise as she turned quickly to look at Tony, whose eyes met hers to silently urge her to play along, just as two suddenly hopeful young faces turned to her as if she were their last hope.

"I wasn't having much luck," Tony began spinning his tale for the kids, "but I think maybe if _you_ guys asked her too..." DiNozzo's grin was wicked, knowing what was inevitable.

"_Please, _Agent David?" Jared and Lily both turned on the charm that they knew could melt the heart of at least one long time NCIS agent. "Mom _really_ isn't any good at skating; she won't even try." Jared added. _"Please?"_

Tony looked back at his partner and, seeing a tiny look of hesitancy from the woman he'd never before seen shrink from a physical challenge, guessed, "c'mon – I'm a great teacher. I'll have you looking like an expert in no time."

The kids seemed to miss the narrow-eyed glare Ziva gave her partner when she knew she'd been caught, but DiNozzo didn't, and it made him beam all the brighter to know he'd been right. As Jared and Lily chorused their pleas again, their mother corralled them a bit with an apologetic look to Ziva. "I'll throw in all the hot chocolate you can handle," she offered, her own hope rising that her kids' evening might be salvaged.

Ziva knew she was outnumbered, and had to admit to herself that their evening sounded far less boring than if she simply went home as she'd planned. "Alright," she drew herself a bit straighter. "Anything the three of you can do, I can do too. But why should I believe you can teach me, Tony? Are you even able to skate yourself?" she challenged him, her own grin teasing him back.

"Hey, I grew up in New York – how could I not go to Rockefeller Center? _And_ I was a P.E. major. In the Midwest. You know, cold winters, all that? It's almost impossible to avoid ice skating in Ohio – though I don't suppose you _could_ have done a lot of ice skating in the Mossad, could you, _Probie?_" His know-it-all grin was at its most impossible.

"If they had found it to be a valuable skill, they would have taught us," she said smugly.

"Uh-huh," he grinned down to Lily and Jared, drawing them in with his conspiratorial smirk, even though they weren't quite sure what they were in on. "Let's just see if we can't show her some value to skating, alright? Are ya with me, guys?"

"Yeah!" they chorused, each spilling with excitement to tell "Ms. Ziva" their skating plans.

They were so excited they didn't even notice that their harried father, crossing from his office to MTAC, heard their again-happy voices and paused a moment, a small, tired smile finally crossing his features, when he saw who was with them and quickly figured out what was happening. Jackie's eyes met his and she blew him a kiss; Tony saw it and glanced up behind him to see his boss watching from above. Vance nodded once, paused, then mouthed, "thank you" as he actually lay a quick palm over his heart.

Touched, it took Tony just a moment to nod, then offer his trademark grin and nod again. "Okay, gang," he turned back to assume his coaching duties, "we gonna stand around talking about it or are we gonna _skate?_"

"Skate!" the kids cheered, and the group moved off toward the elevator, Tony telling them he'd have to stop at his locker to swap his suit for his sweats. As they did, Ziva looked up toward MTAC to see that the Director had lingered another few moments to watch them, and she smiled in response to his nod of thanks to her. For a brief moment, it tugged at her emotions, remembering recent words from her own father about losing a piece of himself, and realizing that what she'd just seen in Vance might be what Eli might have felt, giving up family time in the never-ending struggle to ensure the security of his country. She wondered if his face might have shown the same pain in disappointing his children as Vance's had. As she turned to leave with the group, she glanced down at the tiny blue and white flag still standing proud among her pencils and pens, and found herself willing to believe it would...

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

They drove to the skating rink in their own vehicles, Tony and Ziva each following Jackie's SUV, each having very different thoughts as they anticipated what was to come. On arrival, Tony led Ziva up to the window where skates could be rented, and Ziva watched with some surprise as Tony politely but firmly sent back two pair of skates before he even let her try one on, without lacing it, to assure they had the right size. Satisfied with hers, he then took the second pair offered in his size, and told Jared and Lily to lead the way. Following the group, Ziva let herself watch this compelling, "coach Tony" effortlessly take charge of this impromptu outing, watching out for her and the others just as he would on a case...

It was at times like this she found herself wondering why such a man could still make her absolutely crazy with his other, less adult behavior. But as she watched him tease their boss's children, not sounding all that adult even now, she wondered how much was his behavior and how much her response. There was no question that a part of him had never quite grown up, and probably never would – but it was that part of him that made Lily and Jared forget their earlier disappointment for the moment, and that part of him that tempered the long days and an often difficult supervisory special agent.

Ziva glanced back at him and found his green eyes twinkling at her, clearly anticipating their "lesson." When she threw him the smirk he'd expect from her and he laughed, Ziva knew without hesitation that Tony Diozzo should never grow up any more than he already had.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

The little group came into the chilly rink, where Jared and Lily immediately went to a bench at the rinkside, pulled their skates from their bags and kicked off their shoes. Ziva paused for a moment to watch the many skaters zipping around the rink, some very quickly with smooth, strong glides, and shook her head with a frown. "How difficult can it be?" she asked. "It is all balance, and muscle control. This is something in which I have a good deal of training..."

"But I did too, Ms. Ziva," Lily looked up to her in all seriousness, eager to share her own efforts, "and I fell on my behind _five times_ before I stood up once."

Tony grinned as he sat by Lily and went about putting on his skates. "So guys ... once Ms. Ziva takes all her training and balance and muscle control out on the ice, and ends up on _her_ butt, we're gonna help her learn to skate, right?"

"Right!" they chorused.

"...because a ninja really needs to have winter sports in her repertoire, too – you never know when you'll be expected to chase after a bad guy on ice..."

Jackie had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud at the agents. Leon wasn't kidding about this one, she thought as she watched DiNozzo leer at his partner. She could see how he'd drive the tough, sober Gibbs and her focused, intense husband crazy with his incessant chattering and teasing – and she was glad to see that the Service had someone around like DiNozzo who might let them blow off some steam when it was needed.

Tony laced up his skates quickly and stood to watch the others do so too. Once laced up, Ziva stood carefully, testing the feel of the stiff heel and sturdy leather around her ankle, and decided she would not fall, given the taunting implication that she would.

"Hey, guys?" As the youngsters stood to go toward the ice, Tony's eyes pulled from Ziva and his grin suddenly shifted into an easy, responsible smile, and crouched in front of the children. "Let's see if you're laced up right."

"We know how," Jared complained a little, as Tony's deft fingers checked the lacings and made sure they were secure and tucked away.

"I can see that," DiNozzo said smoothly, as he shifted from Jared to his sister, "but your dad is my boss, _and_ he carries a gun. If either of you trips and gets a bloody nose because _I_ didn't check ... whoo boy, would you want to be me?" He stood as they both shook their heads no, Lily quite solemnly, and Jared with a snicker. Jackie just beamed, and even Ziva relented to smile at that. Tony saw it and grinned back, flushed with success. "Okay, you're ready. What about Ms. Ziva?" He stood again, turning to her.

"I will let you check them this _one_ time, Tony, since it is my first."

As he moved over to now crouch at her feet as he had with Jared and Lily, he baited, "shouldn't you wait to see how you do before you start promising more trips out here, Zee-vah?"

"Oh, alright – but this looks as if it is something I can do," she declared. "And the speed..." she watched a teenager fly by on the outer lap ring built for speed skater training, appreciation growing in her eyes.

Tony had seen the increasing anticipation in his partner's longing looks toward the rink, the skaters already on the ice, and the Vance kids now clomping toward the rink's open entrance. Swallowing his real response to see it, he gave her laces a pat instead and tipped his head toward the ice, solemnly. "Gotta walk before you can run." He watched as she took a bold step behind the kids, and another – and promptly plopped down hard as her feet went in different directions. Tony stepped onto the ice behind her and glided up easily on the slick surface. "And ya gotta stand before you can walk." He looked down at her for only a moment more before holding out a hand. "C'mon. You'll be a fast study – trust me."

She grimaced, but seeing the Vance kids glide away, maybe not quite as gracefully as some there but clearly with an ease that let her know he might just be right, she took his hand and stood, wobbling only a moment as she found her center of gravity. Not letting go of her hand, Tony offered his other hand, and when she just blinked at it, he urged again, "c'mon – hold on. Skating 101."

When Ziva tentatively put her other hand in Tony's he grinned, and with a easy push of one skate, then the other, he started off skating backwards, to pull her along. "Just relax and get the feel of things – the skates ... the ice." His voice was low and rhythmic, matching the lazy feel of his gliding strokes. "Your ankles feel okay?" At her nod, mute as she assessed the wealth of new sensations, he grinned and kept moving in a rhythmic, surprisingly graceful side to side glide. "Just relax and let's go 'round a time or two."

As they skated, Tony glanced behind him a few times, being sure the way was clear. In only a few moments, first Lily, and then Jared fell in to skate beside them. "You're good," Lily beamed up to Tony. "Even Jared can't go backwards."

"I can teach you if you want – it's not hard," Tony grinned, eyes not leaving Ziva's face as it moved from hesitation to a sort of wonder, then an enjoyment of the movement they shared. He could feel that she grew steadier, quickly, and that she leaned on him less for support. As his grin widened, eyes still locked, Ziva could see that Tony felt her gaining confidence on the ice, and it made her even stronger. Tony in turn saw her reaction and his smile now dazzled. "What'dya think?" he tried. "Ready to start skating?"

"Of course," she tried to remain stern but couldn't, as the wonderful feeling of the ice – and Tony's proud grin – made her grin too. "Show me," she demanded.

"Okay," he never broke stride, but slowed a little, gradually. "Just push off with your left and glide on your right," he demonstrated, but still backward, "then push off with your right, side ... to side ... ...just like ridin' a bicycle," he said melodically, with the movement.

"This is not at all like riding a bicycle," she managed, "other than the balance needed, maybe..."

"Shhh... no talking 'til you get your feet working ... then you can add your mouth," he lectured. The kids tittered.

His voice retained its lyrical quality, low and calm, swaying with their gliding stride. At first, she was a little wobbly and her strides unsure, but as she went around the ring, holding Tony's hands, she played a bit with her stride and her muscle movement. Soon she was finding the balance and strength she knew she had, and was starting to copy his gliding strokes. Her own grin returning, triumphant now, Ziva looked up as Tony nodded encouragement.

"Okay ... now, just keep going like that, okay? Don't let me throw you ..." Tony dropped one of Ziva's hands and, with another two or three passes skating backward, watching her closely and feeling her still steady on her feet, Tony deftly pivoted to face the direction they were skating and come shoulder to shoulder with her. He felt her bobble slightly but regain her balance quickly. "Okay?" his grin was back, even bigger when she nodded silently, excitement in her eyes.

It was only another lap of the rink before Tony looked to her again and dropped the hand he was holding, success on his features as the Vance children cheered for Ziva's now-solo skating. The competitor in her cheered along, pleased that she had indeed learned quickly. The woman in her, though, was a bit sad that Tony felt he could drop his hands so soon...

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

As she expected with Tony, however, neither things – nor she – stayed upright for long. He soon started teasing her to go faster, and with the kids help, had her moving along faster and faster, still awkward at many moments but red cheeked with the cold and laughter. Skating circles around Ziva, and predictably starting to show off for her, Tony slipped and went down, Ziva unable to stop herself from falling right over him, as the kids squealed their delight and fell too, for moral support. Ziva then learned first-hand the time-honored gag of yanking everyone standing back to the ice until they were laughing so hard they couldn't get up if they tried.

Tony knew he had never see Ziva laugh so hard she was breathless, and he grinned wider as he watched her, his triumph for getting her to that point even sweeter knowing what a rough couple years it had been for her. The woman he saw – and heard – laughing helplessly was worlds away from the Ziva he'd discovered alive after so long a prisoner, and it made everything seem hopeful, suddenly...

"What are you staring at, Tony?" She'd managed to get her breath but just barely, and his ninja assassin now balanced on her hands and knees, pulling her feet forward to allow the toe of her right skate bite into the ice.

"You." He stood easily and reached out a hand to pull her up. Suddenly she was standing again, now in close to him, suddenly almost nose to nose. "Laughing hysterically like a crazy person looks good on you," his smile – and eyes – were sincere as he spoke. "You should do it more often."

As close as they were, and as breathless as Ziva was, she had no comeback for his – compliment? – for several moments, but finally with a grin of inspiration, she managed, "for ... birds of a feather, yes?"

He laughed at her catching his mood, and fought against the parade of emotions he held for her, the urge to say or do more harder than ever to resist. She might have seen it; her eyes suddenly widened and her irises dilated as her smile softened a little. But he knew they had an audience – the wife and children of their boss, no less, who would report their evening to Vance and with their luck tell Gibbs about what would sound an awful lot like a violation of Rule 12. He kicked off a little to skate backward, widening the gap between them, and grinned again.

"C'mon, people!" he called to the kids as he kept her eyes with his. "Laps!"

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

After nearly thirty minutes, Jackie had lured them in with steaming cups of hot chocolate, gratefully taken by the skaters and sipped below reddened cheeks and noses. After only a few minutes, though, the kids were ready for other spin on the ice, and Lily asked hopefully, "Agent Tony, will you show us how to skate backward, like you did?"

"_Speeeecial_ agent Tony," DiNozzo drawled out, reveling in the chance to be silly after a long, involved case. The cold air, the exercise, the kids' giggles – and Ziva's clear enjoyment of the evening – left him content and happy. He pretended not to notice all the rolling eyes at the rinkside table his words brought.

"_Special_ agent Tony," Lily complied. "Please?"

"I can't ever say no to a pretty lady who asks so nicely," Tony stood, glancing to Ziva, who was still nursing her hot chocolate, hands around the mug to warm them and sipping slowly to savor the warmth. He sighed in mock disappointment and announced, "Agent Ziva is still a bit frostbitten – maybe we need to let her warm up a bit more."

"I am just as warm as you, Tony," she challenged.

"Yeah, I can see that," he smirked. _"Rudolph..."_ he added, tapping his nose to make his point. "Maybe you could just stick it in the hot chocolate to warm it up faster."

At the kids' giggles in response, clearly not used to such ebullience in an adult, and certainly not in any of the agents they'd met so far, DiNozzo beamed and led them back out onto the ice. Now, relieved of his task to get Ziva on her feet, he zipped around and tried a few fancy moves with varying success, much to the delight of the pair with him. Ziva was alternately impressed and chagrined, her partner's usual antics made even bigger with his audience. She grinned into her cup, taking another mouthful of the warm, sweet chocolate, when Jackie leaned in close to ask, "So how long have you two ... you know..." the brown eyes twinkled conspiratorially, "been seeing each other?"

"We are not!" Ziva responded quickly, eyebrows high in surprise.

"Oh, c'mon," Jackie rolled her eyes. "It's so obvious. I mean, _look_ at him," Jackie gestured toward the rink just as Tony sailed by, grinning widely at the women, a Vance kid dangling from each arm as they laughed so hard they barely stayed on. "And look at you." Ziva felt herself blush, and Jackie relented only a little, tipping her head toward the ice and the antics in front of them. "Imagine a peacock strutting in front of a peahen, feathers all spread for show. And if he's not auditioning for fatherhood, I don't know _what_ that's about."

Ziva's eyes widened in shock at the idea, then shook her head forcefully, as much for herself as for Jackie. "You do not know Tony DiNozzo – fatherhood and responsibility is the _last_ thing on his mind. This is all Tony being a big kid. This is how he acts at work – immature and silly, and..."

"...and he was awarded the Civilian Service Medal last year, and one a couple years before that." Jackie reminded her gently, knowing exactly what it was that had finally landed DiNozzo not one but two of the impressive awards. "Besides, that's what 'boys' do – they show off for the girl they want to impress. If he was just being silly, or even silly just for my kids – for which he deserves another medal, just as you do," Jackie added, "he wouldn't be looking up here every couple minutes to see if you're still watching him."

Ziva looked away from the probing dark eyes and down into her cup, this time pausing a moment before shaking her head again. "It is only because he knows his being childish will irritate me..."

"So he's got you irritated, is that it?"

Feeling another blush warm her cheeks, Ziva looked up again to see Jackie's wise grin, and hoped that it would simply look like she was still pink with the cold. At Jackie's conspiratorial look, Ziva finally admitted, "no..."

"Didn't think so," Jackie sat back, looking a bit smug.

"But even if you were right – _which"_ Ziva spoke over Jackie's immediate protest, "I do not concede ... Gibbs has a rule against dating co-workers..."

"Then _he_ doesn't have to date a co-worker," Jackie grinned at her own comeback.

This time it was Ziva's turn to roll her eyes, but she laughed, surprised to be caught up in an English word twist even without mangling an idiom. "You know what I mean ... against _co-workers_ dating."

"Why?"

Ziva blinked at the question, thinking it over, then chuckled. "I do not think that anyone has ever had the nerve to ask Gibbs 'why' for any of his rules. They just ... are."

Jackie looked back to the ice and shrugged, "he's out of town for a week on vacation, isn't he?"

Ziva stared at the Director's wife for a moment then laughed, deflecting, "you know more about our schedules than we do!"

"Not all, but some," she smirked, cryptically. "But I _do_ know that _Special_ Agent Anthony DiNozzo will be in town over the holiday – what about you?"

"Yes, I will be." _Now_, she thought, having canceled her ski plans for reasons she wouldn't admit to herself yet. "But Tony said..."

Jackie interrupted, shaking her head, "that man probably says a lot of things, doesn't he?"

Ziva looked at her for a long moment before finally laughing a little, then nodding, "yes, he does. Have you known Tony for longer than we know about?"

This time it was Jackie who laughed. "Nope. Psych major. I even did a bit of work for the FBI before we had the kids." She grinned. "Profiler," she added.

Ziva laughed softly as she nodded. "Well, then, as a profiler, since you know him so well," she challenged, "what will he be doing for Christmas?"

"That much didn't take profiling. He's on call over Christmas, and as supervisory agent for the on-call MCRT, he'll probably be spending the day on the Yard."

"Tony?" Ziva was again surprised. "But ... he never said..." She looked back at the rink, where the temporary supervisory agent was showing Jared and Lily how to start moving backward from a standstill with a weaving, in and out turn of the ankle. "And if it's the MCRT, I should have been called up as well."

"It wasn't a matter of being called up, it was a voluntary duty – I think they post it in September or October, but he's done it for a number of years now, I guess, so Leon just contacted him and asked if he was interested again this year. It's just so people who want to take the holiday won't get called away from family plans."

Ziva looked back at the trio just as Tony looked back up to where the women sat and beamed for her, clearly having too much fun playing coach to pay too close attention to what he saw. After a moment, considering the information, Ziva said softly, "that sounds like Tony." She paused. "I wonder if he will need any help..."

"Probably still time to be added to the call list," Jackie nudged. "And probably no problem getting on the yard yourself, you know, in case you wanted to sneak him a little bit of Christmas dinner."

"Because even Tony might have a hard time finding pizza delivery on Christmas," Ziva mused, then smirked, "so it is lucky that I am Jewish, and can deliver on Christmas, and can probably even find him a decent holiday meal – although it may be brisket and latkes left over from Hanukkah," she laughed.

"I have a hunch he just might like whatever you bring him," Jackie suggested.

"Your hunch as a profiler?"

"Or just as a nosy friend." Jackie looked back at the tall, handsome agent cavorting with her kids. "He's a good man, Ziva."

The probationary agent looked back to the object of their discussion, who glanced back to the women as he led the Vance children in another couple laps around the rink. She was quiet for a few moments as they watched the skaters, before she finally admitted, "I know."

"Well then?"

Ziva turned back to gape at the woman sitting across from her and finally protested, "Jackie!" She found herself wondering if she would feel so flustered had the Director's wife not read her mind about what she saw in her partner. She thought for a moment then shrugged, "if I were to be on duty over the holidays too it would not be so difficult to take dinner in to him..."

Jackie grinned. "Go on..."

"...and it would not seem so suspicious to him..." She frowned then and shook her head. "It is out of the question. Rule 12..."

"Gibbs is off in the hills of Pennsylvania for a week. His Rules went with him."

"You know about his Rules, then?" At Jackie's nod, Ziva hesitated, then shook her head even harder. "He will know. Somehow, even from a distance – he will know." As she spoke, she scanned the area around them again, as she had been conditioned to do, and this time caught the first sight of Director Vance as he entered the rink, followed by one of the agents who often accompanied him as detail. His eyes met hers and she smiled softly. _A father who made it to the promised family evening, after all_, she considered. A new appreciation for her Director settled in her as she nodded toward him.

Not yet seeing her husband and having missed the exchange, Jackie was laughing at Ziva's last words and the hush with which they were spoken. "Oh, come on; even the famous Gibbs can't be that bad..."

"You have no idea," Ziva mused wryly.

"She's right."

Jackie turned in surprise at the words, and her husband's warm hand on her shoulder in the next moment. "Leon!" she beamed, as he leaned in for a quick kiss. "What happened to your conference?"

"We lost satellite feed – they said it will be another three hours before the next one is in range to have the hook-up we need. I figured that in the meantime, I can get a bit of skating in."

"You may have to skate alone. I think Special Agent DiNozzo may have worn them ou..."

"Dad!"

First Jared, then Lily, saw their father and called to him from the ice, scrambling over to the side of the rink. Tony was looking up to the three at the table, and acknowledged his boss's wave with his own. He came up behind the children as they waited for their father to join them, not losing his smile, but his buoyant energy now quieted with the Director's arrival.

At that, Ziva's attention focused more closely on her partner and his reaction to the family. _Someone else who understands what the Director's appearance means_, she realized. _Maybe more than everything else, this was something she and Tony had in common, no matter how long ago they may have had holidays and promised outings with fathers notably absent..._

Both Ziva and Jackie watched as the men exchanged a couple words and Leon took Tony's place on the ice. The kids excitedly showed their father how they'd learned to skate backward, along with a couple other tricks they'd learned that night. As they did, Tony came up to the table where the women still sat, more quietly now that he'd been relieved of his coaching duties.

"Looks as if your kids are in good hands," he joked toward Jackie, nodding back to the ice as he sat to take off his skates. "Thanks for letting us borrow them."

"Tony, you two made their evening," Jackie said sincerely.

"Ha, us? Nah, we just were able to stall 'til the satellite failed. How about those crazy ninja moves Ziva has, huh?" as he stood again he started to babble, a sure sign of his sudden discomfort with her thanks. " I keep trying to get her to teach me how she knocks out a whole satellite, but she won't ever tell..."

"Jackie – Merry Christmas." Ziva got up as well, both verbally and physically stepping in between her partner and the Director's wife, both to rescue Tony from saying too much and to show her appreciation for Jackie's ... _concern._ "Please tell the Director and the children for us, too." The other Vances, out on the ice now, were having too much fun to think about the agents leaving.

Jackie stood as Ziva did, moving to give each agent a warm hug and to murmur a soft thanks to each, then turned to walk to the edge of the rink to clap and offer encouragement to her brood. Standing by as Ziva sat down to change out of her skates, Tony looked out to the ice and tipped his head their way. "Nice little family, huh? Almost makes you forget that Daddy is the intense, brooding Director Vance, second only to Gibbs in his use of the 'silence as power' iron fist..."

Ziva looked at Tony quizzically and just laughed. "Come on," she turned to go, and as they walked to the door, she added, "Tony, I will admit that you can still surprise me. I never suspected you could skate – a feat in itself that anything is still a secret, as much as you talk about yourself."

"See, there's so much to tell..." he bounced back to her.

"Who taught you to skate?" she asked, and when she saw, very subtly, a return of the look he had earlier, she guessed, "your father?"

DiNozzo glanced at her, wondering how she guessed so fast, but then nodded. "Rockefeller Center," he said again. They stepped outside into the cold air, and Ziva stopped him, a hand on his arm.

"Do you want to know what my father taught me?"

He laughed, that barking, staccato sound he made when he was covering his feelings, the sound when he wanted to divert attention from the truth. "Geez, do I?" he stalled. "Did he tell you that the only way to finish off an evening of ice skating was to find a big bowl of the best chili in town? Because _that_ would be impressive."

Ziva looked at him in initial disbelief, ready to be frustrated that, once again, he refused to allow her to be serious or open up to him. But in staring into his eyes she suddenly saw more there than she had before, and a sudden truth dawned on her – _This is Tony DiNozzo's way of asking that the evening continue, that we not end it yet... _

Ziva's lips curled up into a smirk, and she tipped back her head in mock scorn. "If Mossad had found skating to be valuable, they would have trained us in it, in _all_ its important parts – including chili, yes."

The delight in his eyes moved her, as his appreciation that she finally _got_ it was clear. "With cheese and onions on spaghetti, Cincinnati style."

"If you insist," she agreed.

"My car," he tipped his chin toward the lot, "I can bring you back."

She nodded, but as they started across the parking lot, she decided she could press, too. "But Tony," she tried again, "can you guess what my father _did_ teach me?"

Tony stopped again, and this time he seemed to waiver a moment, not certain he wanted to know but with her response to his first answer, he owed her. "Beyond the fighting and the ninja sense and the killing any guy who takes you to a bad restaurant?"

"Yes, beyond all that." She continued the additional few yards to his car, then stepped in close to him when he came up behind her, standing mere inches from him, well into his 'personal space' as she used to do. "He taught me to be a good judge of character," she said softly. "You are a good person, Tony."

He wasn't expecting that, obviously, and he hesitated before resisting the implications, saying, "yeah, well, he probably would wonder about how well you paid attention to his instructions if he heard you saying that."

Beyond the laugh and the sarcasm, Ziva saw the genuine doubt in his expression, the endlessly lingering insecurity that was a part of the Tony DiNozzo she knew, no matter how well he hid it most of the time. "My father admires you, Tony," she said warmly – firmly. "He would not disagree."

"Your father – admires _me?_" he blinked, genuinely surprised, even though he quickly covered, "the same Eli David who wanted to carve me up into bits and feed me to the camels?"

She rolled her eyes. "The same – although I think he would have fed you to the jackals. Or maybe more fitting, the hyenas..." He said nothing, but continued looking at her, clearly now wondering if she were pulling his leg. She relented a little and said, "not many have stood up to him in recent years and were successful in doing so. Even fewer were able to fool him into missing that they were doing just that." Tony's eyes flickered in recognition as his thoughts went back to a conference room in Mossad headquarters, where he was left to defend himself before its Director. "I believe if you had been Israeli, he would have offered you a job."

He snorted softly, but kept his thoughts to himself. She could guess what he was thinking and appreciated his not voicing them – especially as he had to be the one to rescue her when _she_ was back, working for Director David. As she stood looking at him now, Jackie's words played in her head, and Ziva found herself facing truths she had known all along but never really examined – that Tony DiNozzo really _was_ a good man, more fiercely brave and loyal than most she'd known, all carefully hidden behind his sophomoric demeanor. He also carefully hid his intelligence and his compassion – until he found those who needed rescue, needed saving – or needed a big, adolescent federal agent to step in when their father's work called him away from their plans...

What had Abby said, all soft and goofy on the outside but a rock inside?

She tipped her head as she looked at him, and knew without a doubt that she would regret it if any other woman came along and saw what she saw in him. Making up her mind, she smiled up at him, pulled the car door open, then turned back toward him before getting inside. "You know where to find us some of this Cincinnati chili, yes?"

He blinked a little, as if coming out of his own thoughts, and nodded. "Best in town," he promised.

"Good." She paused, then looked him in the eye. "One advantage we would have in Mossad, if you had come to work there – no Rule 12." She watched as he reacted, first surprised, then a question, and then... she wasn't quite sure, but it seemed like anticipation. Whatever it was, his smile was curious and his eyes held a challenge, as if he were daring her to make good on her implication.

"Rule 12 a problem for you, Probie?" he teased, just making sure that he wasn't getting the message wrong.

"I am not certain. Do the rules apply if Gibbs is out of town?"

DiNozzo wavered, clearly intrigued and pleased that something was brewing. "I dunno – think we ought to try it and see?"

Ziva smiled shrewdly, and shrugged. "Something to discuss over chili," she tossed as she got in his car.

Tony beamed and jogged around to the driver's side door. "Next stop, chili," he announced as he got in and started the car. "Now there's another Christmas tradition, along with gumbo – _chili_," he joked, his need to diffuse awkward situations ramping up in anticipation.

"I will remember that," she vowed, noting his behavior and allowing herself to catch the significance of Tony's need to hide his feelings. "What will you do for Christmas, Tony?" she asked suddenly.

"Oh, the usual," he blustered. "Gotta go see folks, here and there..."

"Yes, I heard," she chided him. "And you did not tell us about it. But luckily for you I will be here too. I will call the Director and ask that he put me on call as well. Someone must get your back, Tony, someone who is_ used_ to you."

"You?" His eyebrows lifted in surprise. "What about melting the slopes with Mr. Miami Heat?"

"How did you know about that?" Ziva demanded. Only Gibbs had known of her plans, she thought...

"The 'slopes' aren't exactly in on-call range," he ignored her question.

"I will not be going," she said primly. "I will be within on-call range the whole weekend."

He glanced over at her, wanting to know more but biding his time. After a moment, he nodded, "well, sure, if you want to work too, I can use you." He grinned to add, "we don't have a probie on duty, and I was wondering who we could get to do all the grunt work."

Ziva snorted, reminding herself that Tony would always be Tony, and if she were serious about her interest in him she would have to remember that this was a bit part of him. So when he interrupted her thoughts, his voice soft, she was a little surprised – and heartened...

"And ... you know, if you're around with nothing to do ..." he added, "we can usually show some movies there, when nothing's going on. Even in MTAC, sometimes, on the big screen, depending on who's around. Nice little group, some pizza in, and..." he shrugged, "it's better than being alone over the holiday."

"You will be supervising the MCRT on call?" she confirmed. When he nodded, she grinned, more sure of her desire to press things, "then we will not need to worry about Rule 12 for the weekend, yes?"

Again he glanced at her and away again, quickly, again not entirely sure where things were going. "You do remember which one Rule 12 is? You're not just worried about a knife here, are you?"

She shifted in her seat to look at him fully. "No, Tony – not a knife." She enjoyed teasing him, but knew he was insecure enough that teasing about her motives would be unkind. "Unless ... it is not a good time for me to ask about Rule 12."

"No, it's fine – unless you were asking in relation to ... to Palmer ... or even McGee. Or _Gibbs_, ugh," he pretended to shiver, "because if you and Gibbs hooked up, whoa, that would be some scary, dangerous stuff..."

"Not any of them," she promised.

"Then it's fine." He glanced looked toward her again as he pulled up to stop at a light, and looked longer at her, very serious now. "It's _very_ fine. I mean, if it's something _you_ wanted to ... investigate."

"That is what we do, Tony, _investigate,_" she grinned, touched that of all people, Tony, the purported playboy, was so cautious in this, and it occurred to her that with everything that had happened between them in recent years, that had happened to _her_, he might just be concerned about saying or doing the wrong thing, maybe even worried about throwing off the relationship they had now, as partners. He was looking at her again, just as the light changed and he had to start moving, and she just had to say something. "You are a good person, Tony," she repeated. "And I do not want to risk someone else finding that out, and ..." she shrugged, then smiled privately. "... and making me regret not telling you this."

He was silent a moment, then chuckled "wow," still letting the idea sink in. Typical DiNozzo, he just couldn't resist one more wisecrack. "This isn't all just because Daddy approves?"

"Of course not!" she snapped. After a moment, though, when she couldn't hide the grin any longer, she relented, "of course... it does not hurt, either..."

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

_(Belated) Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Excellent New Year to All!_


End file.
